As overall power increases in fiber lasers and amplifiers, the amount of optical power which must be dealt
with in order to obtain high core to core and core to cladding isolation also increases. This unwanted light
can represent hundreds of watts and must be managed adequately. By combining a proper termination (end
cap) design and cladding stripping techniques it is possible to obtain a robust output beam delivery
component. The cladding stripping techniques are inspired by previous work done on high power cladding
strippers. All measurement presented here are done with a flat end cap. Both core to core and core to
cladding isolation will be better with an angled end cap. A core-to-core isolation of over 25dB was
measured, while core to cladding was over 30dB. Power handling was characterized by the capability of
the device to handle optical power loss, rather than transmitted power. The component dissipated over 50
watts of optical power due to isolation. The above results show that understanding the mechanisms of
optical loss for forward and backward propagating light in a end cap and the heat load that these losses
generate is the key to deliver kilowatts of optical power and protect the integrity of the system.